District proposes higher pre‑K tuition, shifts classrooms from daycare program and seeks more before/after‑care revenue

Dr. Schwarz told the board the district is considering a multi‑part revenue strategy that includes increasing pre‑K tuition and restructuring how the district provides early‑childhood care. "We're talking about moving that up to about $10,000," he said of pre‑K tuition as a budgeting assumption, noting the district still would be below market rate for a high‑demand program and that grandfathering or phased increases could be used.

To contain the significant cost of out‑of‑district placements for some special‑education students, the administration proposed expanding Glenn School's REACH preschool program and taking back some classroom space currently used by ITDC (infant/toddler daycare). Dr. Schwarz and Dr. Fenwick said they are evaluating which age cohorts would be affected and committed to communicating transitions to families to minimize disruption. The district emphasized priority policies that favor staff and Ridgewood residents when feasible.

On before‑ and after‑care, the business office said current vendor agreements may not be maximizing district revenue and proposed issuing a new request for proposals that would emphasize supervision quality, academic support, and a specified district revenue share; administrators also discussed a conservative in‑house operating model as an alternative if vendor proposals don't meet revenue or service expectations.

Administrators said they will return with detailed projections comparing expanded Glenn/REACH capacity, ITDC revenue impacts, and expected increases in local tuition lines before the tentative budget vote.